NEED TO CATCH up? The Journal brings you a round-up of today’s news.

IRELAND

Joe Duffy pictured leaving RTÉ Radio Centre after presenting his final Liveline show. Andres Poveda Andres Poveda

• A 41-year-old man has been handed a life sentence for the murder of Damien Heagney.
• “Thank You For Being a Friend” opened Joe Duffy’s last Liveline show today as a live band played to a live studio audience to bid farewell to the veteran broadcaster. 
• A young waitress was harassed at work by a former councillor who told her that she was the “prettiest girl” he had ever seen, kissed her hand, tried to get her phone number and stared at her both in the restaurant and through the window outside, a court has heard.
• A record number of people in the State are officially recognised as homeless as the latest figures reveal 15,747 people were living in emergency accommodation in May.
• A teenage boy is to face trial accused of sexually assaulting and attempting to rape a woman in a Dublin pub.
• Several Irish politicians are travelling to Budapest to take part in the city’s Pride in a show of solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community amid an attempted ban by Hungarian authorities.

INTERNATIONAL

US President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the briefing room of the White House in Washington. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

#ISRAEL: Israeli soldiers in Gaza have been ordered repeatedly to fire on unarmed civilians when they approach humanitarian aid distribution sites, according to reporting from the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. 

#WELFARE CUTS: After winning a stunning electoral victory just under a year ago, the UK Labour Party has been roiled by divisions this week over Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s proposed cuts to social welfare payments. 

Starmer’s chief of staff, Irishman Morgan McSweeney, has become a lightning rod for much of the criticism coming from the left of the party. 

#COUNTER TERRORISM POLICE: Three people have been arrested on suspicion of a terror offence, after two planes at an RAF base were vandalised in an action claimed by soon-to-be banned campaign group Palestine Action.

#SEAN ‘DIDDY’ COMBS: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs was portrayed in his lawyer’s closing argument today as the victim of an overzealous prosecution, which tried to turn the recreational use of drugs and a swinger lifestyle into a racketeering conspiracy that could put the music mogul behind bars for life.

PARTING SHOT

Joe Duffy will retire today after over 25 years on RTÉ's Liveline. Rollingnews.ie / RTÉ Rollingnews.ie / RTÉ / RTÉ

AFTER OVER 25 years in the Liveline hotseat, Joe Duffy, one of Ireland’s most recognisable and influential voices on radio, will hang up his mic for the last time this afternoon. 

From scandalising the nation after the release of Normal People, to “51551 Wash yer hands”, Joe has brought us countless iconic moments over the years. But younger readers may not recall Joe’s instrumental role in Ireland accidentally legalising ecstasy and ketamine for a day. 

You can read all about it here.